Synchronized shared media networks (e.g., wireless networks) transmit user traffic according to timeslots or even at fixed intervals, with an attempt to meet specific traffic requirements, optimize the overall efficiency of the system, etc. In contrast, non-synchronized systems are based on the assumption that nodes are free to transmit (after carrier sensing) when they have data to transmit without any synchronization. Although non-synchronous techniques are quite advantageous is many ways, this becomes very problematic as the offered load gets close to the maximum level of congestion that a link can tolerate before the network collapses. Current approaches generally involve increasing the bandwidth on the links close to the congestion points (e.g., at/near directed acyclic graph or “DAG” roots), such as adding links, supporting multiple frequencies, etc., or performing load balancing on the traffic across a set of links across multiple (e.g., diverse) paths, among other techniques. These alternatives are directed at reducing the risk of congestion, however there is no solution to handle the congestion once it occurs.